Health &Fitness

Week 7. The penultimate week of The Ultimate You Challenge.

July 4, 2016

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Think on this:
So what have YOU got to roar about?
Have you reached all the goals that you set in the first week of your Heat?
Have you had to reassess them?
Perhaps, like me, the goals that you though were going to be tough to achieve,
were completed by the end of week two!
Should you tell all and sundry about your new healthy choices?
Why not!
If you are getting compliments from family and friends,
tell them how you have achieved the “new you”.
More importantly, try to get them to become involved with the Sleekgeek
way of life.
If you are heading into the final week of Heat 1,
I wish you all the best.
The finish line for the Challenge is in sight.
Remember that the line is actually a beginning
and not an end.

#thechoiceismine.

Have you made your timeless choices FUN?
With this Challenge ending soon,
I have made a concious decision to continue
with the lifestyle changes that I have made
since the 30-day Healthy Habits challenge that I my daughter and I won.

I am starting to get feedback from family and friends,
about how good I am looking and not only that,
but I am happier with myself about the changes.

Hopefully you, like me, will have experienced some form of positive change

that will remain with you for LIFE.

What will be YOUR mantra going forward?

This is how I WILL look in my final challenge photograph…
I am having difficulty finding a bat suit…
Can anyone help?

BATZ BUDDIES have risen to the occasion.

Dad (David) and Daughter(Jayne) have joined forces

to support and encourage

each other (and the other teams) to do their best.

This image was taken on a recent visit to my daughter in Cape Town.

Her support and encouragement continue be crucial to me.

Not only did she encourage me to enter this UYC,

but she is making certain that I stick to the “plan”.

This is what my team mate had to say:

This is the Ultimate YOU Challenge for a reason.

Because it is such a personal challenge/journey.

One were you can truly only hold yourself accountable (groups and friends help a lot!!!

But at the end of the day it is just you!)

This Challenge has been a lot more trying for me- maybe because it is Winter,

maybe because January’s resolution to change is waning, maybe maybe maybe…?

But… I am still here.

This is a point, when I notice people can start to feel defeated.

“Oh look how much further others are than me!”

” I will never win, so might as well throw in the towel!”

This is a point where I know I feel easily defeated, and I know I am not alone.

Scales not budging, cms not falling off, frustration at a high….

But… I am still here. Why?!

Because this is my body, and this is still my desire to change.

My body doesn’t leave me in 8 weeks, we don’t part ways if it ‘doesn’t work out’.

This is the Ultimate reminder… this is not just a challenge…

this is my desire to change my way of life!

The biggest joy for me has been my return to road running.
A couple of months ago I was in Cape Town on business
and Jayne, my daughter, asked me to go for a short run.
I cried off, using a variety of excuses why I could not.
Bottom line was that I was overweight and VERY unfit.
It was shortly after this trip that she
asked me to join her on the 30-day Healthy Habits challenge.
And I have not looked back since then.
Considering that several years ago I used to run marathons
and ultra distance events like Comrades,I had to start from scratch.
My “return” run was only 2km,but it was a start!
Then followed a week of walking/running to get my head in the game,
and some attainable goal setting
5km in under 32 minutes, was my first goal.
My first attempt was 35 minutes.
Currently, that time has been reduced to 28.02
and I am hoping to break 27 minutes by the end of the challenge.
My longest run to date has been 13.3km and that took 85 minutes.
My end goal, is to get back to 21.1km again.
I have nothing more to prove to myself in either the marathon
or ultra distance categories.
But who knows…

I am also eating smaller portions and making certain that
there is something “green” on my plate for both lunch and dinner.
I find that since starting this challenge,
I am unable to eat the same amount of food that I did before.
And this is a good thing.
Once again, a positive aspect that I will be taking forward
once I have completed this challenge.